President Kenyatta urges doctors to return to work

President Uhuru Kenyatta has urged doctors to return to work, saying the government is committed to improving their welfare.

The President said the installation of modern medical equipment in hospitals across all the 47 counties was a sign that the working conditions for medics are improving.

The president, who spoke on Saturday during a tour of Kiambu County, said the Sh10 billion the government has offered doctors would translate to Sh56,000 as the lowest increment to doctors in lowest salary scale.

About 3,500 doctors in public hospitals have been on strike since December 5 last year, demanding implementation of the 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement they signed with the Ministry of Health.

The Government has said it is ready to negotiate a new CBA but insists that the one the doctors signed in 2013 cannot be implemented because it was not registered.

Talks to end the doctors strike have been turbulent over the strike period with both sides maintaining hard line stances.

So bad were things that doctors’ union officials opted to serve jail term other than give in to pressure to call of the strike that continues to paralyze health service provision in public hospitals.

The seven Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) officials were found guilty of contempt of court for failing to call off their strike.